A.M. Roundup: Panel named to attack corruption

Good morning! The muggy wave still hasn’t broken. Gov. Andrew Cuomo will talk about corruption in Buffalo and driver safety in New York City. The Joint Commission on Public Ethics will make legislative financial disclosure forms available in the mid to late morning. Otherwise, it should be a getaway day before the holiday. Happy Independence Day, folks. See you Friday. Enjoy this morning’s headlines…

“Commissions are a way of putting off, making you look like you’re doing something when you’re an executive like the governor, when in fact you’re just putting something off,” Republican State Chairman Ed Cox said. (Post-Standard)

The Daily News: A fine sentiment, long overdue.//But you could fill a library with the reports of blue-ribbon panels that tried and failed to embarrass Albany into changing its ways — and with the sad stories of ostensibly fierce watchdogs that were muzzled by the powers that be.//Avoiding that same fate will require the utmost propriety, professionalism and political skill from Fitzpatrick and his two cochairs, Nassau District Attorney Kathleen Rice and former federal prosecutor and Fund for Modern Courts chairman Milton Williams Jr. (DN)

The Times Union: Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s appointment of a commission to investigate public corruption is the right response to legislative gridlock on any meaningful campaign reform.//And Senate Republican leader Dean Skelos’ response is yet another sad display of his indifference to public disappointment in the Legislature. He threatens to turn this into a circus.//Mr. Skelos’ response is its own unwitting case for reform. It reveals, once again, an attitude nurtured by politicians’ control over the electoral process — from drawing legislative districts to ensuring that little serious oversight of political campaigns is done — all of which helps ensure they enjoy re-election after re-election. (TU)

“The question is not: Do you think natural gas is good?” Cuomo said after calling it an “effective” fuel. “The questions is: Can you, in fracking in that area, develop the natural gas? And what are the health or environmental consequences of that development? That’s a different issueof whether or not you think natural gas is good.” (GNS)